Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

Oh dear - no you misunderstood - your girl has a magnificent beard and muff.

My gal named Chickie-chick is the one missing her beard - in fact she is now completely bald on her beard! Someone has over groomed her and plucked all her beard feather out! and most of her muff also - poor chickie!

Before she was plucked she looked just like your beauty

Chickens forcing conformity. Even mine don't do that.

 

[BY Bob]

Big Day Tomorrow

All the chickens will be mixed together......

Some final moments of peace.

 

[Ponypoor]

Meeting chill hour requirements for apples isn't an issue anywhere in the UK, though I expect there'll be a move towards growing more low chill varieties in milder areas in the coming decades. They don't actually need really cold temperatures though; a few degrees above freezing is fine, so long they get enough time at those temps. Southeast England - the county of Kent in particular, 500+ miles south of here - is known for the apples grown there and volunteer trees often thrive in the wild without any care once established.

The wind is the issue here. Small trees or trained forms in a sheltered spot can survive and bear fruit, but they never do all that brilliantly even with a lot of care and they'll never be anything like as productive as a mature half or full standard tree. Warmer climate fruits like peaches, grapes and figs are actually easier because you can grow them in a polytunnel or polycrub without the summer heat being a problem.

In Newfoundland they plant plums (damsons) and apples trees in the lee of a house to shelter them from the wind. Like where you are its exposed to the Atlantic and has no real trees, it's very extreme there. My family's home town:

and in winter the wind howls:

Fowl weather tax:

The Royal Couple - Mr P and Marty

 

[Ponypoor]

Yep, wind is a real killer of fruit blossoms in spring. More than half our Pomegranate flowers get torn off during our vicious wind blasts but somehow manage to give decent yields by Autumn.

40 yrs ago I had a wonderful fig tree that yielded well... however I cut it down. Got tired of the ants, rats, birds, destroying figs, & then the June bugs clung heavily on the limbs every summer Yuch! When we planted new fruit trees we avoided any of the sweeter soft-skin fruit trees like peaches, figs, apricots, mango, plums, etc & only planted acidic citrus & hard skin fruit trees ~ Pink Grapefruit, Lemon, Pomegranate & the Guava bushes have a very tart acidic taste that don't appeal to wild life either.

Only our chickens will play tether ball w/ a very low-hanging Pomegranate but it takes them several days to finally penetrate the hard outer shell. It gives them entertainment to play w/ the swinging Pom much like a swinging cabbage

Pomegranate trees
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Hens relaxing under the Pom trees
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Lemon tree that hens use as shade (hens lower corner of photo)
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Grapefruit tree

I have serious fruit tree envy! Those lemons are awesome, my mum would make lemon meringue pies from those


I think I asked this before, but I want to move my Rhododendron bushes up to the Rooster Run, I do t think the chooks will peck at the leaves…. Anyone have these with their chooks? They would be a great place to hang out under.

 

[Ponypoor]

Chickens forcing conformity. Even mine don't do that.

I know right? you must not have a topknot lets pluck it out! And that beard must go!

Thankfully I have an idea of who it is - likely Laverne the brat. She is so meek and mild and such a sweetie that she doesn't look or act mean to anyone. But then she attacks, plucking a feather here and another there. sheesh! Good thing she's cute and sweetie otherwise 'get in the pot!' hahaha.

Laverne looking all innocent

 

[bgmathteach]

I got a ladder and went up and retrieved it!
Here are Eli and Babs on their first day in quarantine after I brought them home. They were a very generous gift from @bgmathteach.
Eli is the black one at the back.
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And here are the two of them roosting high up in the run.
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And once moved into the coop.
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And here is the egg!
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They both loved your Palace! I had forgotten just how lovely Babs was.

This made me cry - they were so happy at your place - Eli got to be a'mom', and Babs had a fast & special friend with Bernie!

 

[Ponypoor]

Ok all have a splendid evening, time to do chores, it’s a busy day tomorrow, need to get a load of feed in and my uncle is coming up to help drill holes in the cement cistern that is the septic tank. My drills aren’t up to the task. Then backfill the dirt on the tank around the new risers I installed - the lids will be at ground level and I won’t have to dig it up again!

Also want to get Mr P’s spurs trimmed up.

Happy Fluffy Butt Friday everyone

Some baby dirt bath butts

A rooster rump in profile - @RoyalChick check out Henny’s floor sweepers!

Curly’s fluffy behind

Noirans heads and tails

Tiger chicken tails

 

[Ponypoor]

They both loved your Palace! I had forgotten just how lovely Babs was.

This made me cry - they were so happy at your place - Eli got to be a'mom', and Babs had a fast & special friend with Bernie!

It’s wonderful to remember - hard but wonderful.

 

[RoyalChick]

So sorry... but I'm really really bummed today... found out a good friend passed away. He had been President of the Union Rescue Mission on skid row in the '90's... but more than that... he was our neighbor one street away, his kids & mine were all in school together, did activities together, & ultimately he officiated at my DD's wedding & his DD was her bridesmaid. He was the sweetest gentlest human being I'd ever known. So so hard to lose a beautiful family friend

c.1999
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I'm bummed... reflections of some other dear friends we've also lost...
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So very sorry.

 

[BY Bob]

I know right? you must not have a topknot lets pluck it out! And that beard must go!

Thankfully I have an idea of who it is - likely Laverne the brat. She is so meek and mild and such a sweetie that she doesn't look or act mean to anyone. But then she attacks, plucking a feather here and another there. sheesh! Good thing she's cute and sweetie otherwise 'get in the pot!' hahaha.

Laverne looking all innocent
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She surely does look sweet and innocent. Then again, she does look like this sweetie.